Early arrow rests included rests supported by notches to provide a guide as arrows are discharged from the bow. These arrow rests cause large inaccuracies in the trajectory of an arrow. It is well known in the art that an arrow undergoes a series of flexing and bowing motions upon release. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,213,090 to Tone, col 1, lines 31-57, it is documented that fletching strikes on an arrow rest can result in a dispersion of the arrows such that a shot group thirty inches in diameter is formed, whereas when fletching strikes are avoided, the same shot group falls within only a 6-inch circle. Arrow rests introduce undesirable vertical and horizontal forces to the arrow as the fletchings pass over the arrow rests. These undesirable vertical and horizontal forces cause both deflection of the arrow and damage to the fletchings. As noted in the prior art, slotted arrow rests which allow the fletchings to pass through the arrow rest are not suitable for most hunting arrows which have spiral fletching necessary to induce rotation during the flight of the arrow.
Retractable and moveable arrow rests have been introduced to allow the use of all types of fletchings while reducing deflection or damage to the arrow. There are various types of retractable or moveable arrow rests available. A first type includes those current state-of-the art arrow rests which fall in the category of pull down rests or fall down rests. Another type uses the recoil of the bow to move a small weight associated with a spring loaded device. The arrow rest is then forced down and out of the path of the fletching so as not to deflect the arrow from its intended path. This type of device usually must be cocked before each shot. A third type of device uses a string or other attachment to connect the arrow rest to the bow cable so that as the bow is drawn the device is pulled up into the shooting position and as the bow is released the slackening allows the arrow rest to fall out of the line of travel of the arrow. All of these devices have certain short comings due to reaction time of the mechanism. The movement of the arrow is sufficiently rapid that the fletching will strike a retractable rest mechanism even though it begins to fall on bow reaction or upon slackening of the strings. Only the positive pull down mechanism provides a means to assure that the rest will be sufficiently retracted by the time the fletching pass to avoid an impact. This type of rest retraction adds additional string and mechanism which can interfere with unencumbered and flexible use of the bow. There remains a need for an effective retractable arrow rest which will be clear of the arrow fletching prior to the passage of the fletchings. There is also a need for a simple device which does not encumber the bow, the bow string or the associated equipment.